Diane (Confused in PA)

Slept all afternoon. Just read your post about Beety. Maybe it's too late to post on
this topic, but I thought I should.

Is there any evidence that Beety needs all those teeth pulled other than the opinion of this vet? Have you been seeing this vet for a long time? Do you trust her?

I'll tell you what happened to us about 20 years ago in LA. We got 3 shih tzus from
a rescue society. A month or so later, one of the dogs had an eye that looked
murkey and kinda blue.

Took him to a vet who said, "Well, your dog has already lost his sight in one eye, and
needs an immediate operation to prevent loss of sight in the other eye." So we
called the rescue society. The gal who ran it said, "Oh, those vets! Bring him in
to see me right away."

So we did. She said, "You know the shape of the skull makes the eyes on these dogs
very prominent. They often get a little poke from a twig or something." She gave us
a tube of ointment and said, "If the eye doesn't clear up in a day or two, bring him
back here. Do not have any surgery done yet."

Two days of ointment, and the eye returned to normal.

And a few years later we were told we should see a specialist vet about another
of of the dogs for a cardiac condition. Called the place. Was told, "It's $500 to
walk in the door." I said, "Wow! You must have ritzy doors. No thanks."
Our dog lived another 5 years in apparent good health. Because of being rescue
dogs we weren't sure how old they were. But Chester was full grown when we got
him and we had him 15 years.

And when we rushed Zippy to a vet following his attack by a coyote, we had to
go to a new vet as it was in the middle of the night. Our regular vet was in surgery.
Upon arrival, Zippy was immediately taken to an examining room.

The gal at the front desk gave me a form to sign. It said the cost of the exam would be
$500 to $700. I said, "I was told on the phone the exam would cost $50." She said,
"But this is a critical exam." I said, "The point of any exam is to find out what the
problem is. I am not signing that form." So she went back to the $50 fee.

Then she gave us a form with the usual blanks to fill out. Name, address, etc. AND,
in tiny print at the bottom it said we were agreeing to pay all charges the vet
considered necessary and if not paid when billed, we would be charged some exorbitant
interest, etc. Furthermore, there would be a $3 charge for just sending us the bill. So I
refused to sign that too.

Imagine if they sent a bill every day. That alone would cost $1095 per year.

After 20 minutes a teeny tiny Asian woman who looked like a grade school kid came
out and whispered to us. No, she did not know Zippy's condition. I figured he was
probably dead already since he had appeared to be in a coma during the ride to the vet.

At any rate, the alleged vet disappeard for a while. Came back and said they really
couldn't tell much. They probably couldn't save him though. Ended up we paid almost
$100 to have them dispose of the body.

Discouraging news, I know. Do you have any friends with pets who could advise you
about their vet? I am very suspicious of a diagnosis that goes from a few teeth removed
to almost all.

Best of luck to you and Kevin and Beety. I know you want to do what's best for her.

Wow, you certainly have had some "expensive" vet experiences. Goodness -- that one place: $500 to walk in the door! And the part about Zippy, I wanted to cry all over again, over what you and Gordon had to go through. Grrrrrrrr. Our cats' eyes get scratched too, from rough play. And yes, ointment does the trick for them. So far (fingers crossed) there's been no permanent eye damage.

Let me try to explain what I NOW KNOW in greater detail about Beety.

Kevin met with the vet who will do Beety's dental work, at Beety's check-in last evening. (Actually, Dr. Carr's cat went through what I'll describe below. Dental surgery at 2 years old, cat is now 8 and doing well and happy.)

Beety has an autoimmune disease -- Feline Stomatitis (a.k.a. Lymphocytic-plasmacytic stomatitis). Occurs in less than 3% of cats. I was reading about it in The Merck Veterinary Manual. You can google that (merck vet manual feline stomatitis) if y'all want to read more.

Basically, Beety's immune system is attacking her mouth (gums and teeth). She has broken teeth, fractured teeth, lost teeth. But she never exhibited any symptoms, and boy is she a good eater! She has to have a full mouth extraction, only bottom canines left in. The top canines are now loose, they're rocking to the touch.

The vet has to put her under anesthesia. Do xrays. Extractions. Probably more xrays. They do not want to leave part of a root in the mouth, it needs to be a clean, clear extraction.

Beety will be dealing with inflammation, infection, and pain. She'll have meds. For a full recovery, the inflammation and infection have to clear up with treatment. Then she'll be Okey-Dokey. Which I'm praying and praying for!

We've been seeing these Vets since 1999. And yep, we trust them, a lot. For a while, there was a huge turnaround and a vet shortage here in Pittsburgh. Now, for the last several years, the practice is very stable. Dr. P (I can't spell her last name -- LOL) is owner, mentor for others, a DVM, and an all-around good gal.

Beety's surgery will start at 1:00 p.m. Kevin's nervous, but he has his Xanax (which he has cut in 4 -- .25 mg divided into 4 pieces); he's sensitive to "sedative" type meds. I took my first Klonopin of the day, and am keeping my thoughts in good places. Beety will be OK, she will be OK.

Oh, BTW, that Emergency Specialty Vet place is not affiliated with our 24-hour vet/emergency hospital. They advertise on TV that all you need is a referral from your regular vet, and your pet can get the specialty care it deserves. Duh! Seven weeks from now! What a ****. I'll be nice and will only use "nice" words in this post.

Sun, we can't use towels. They scare the cats, not sure why. I take my chances. Some petting, scratching. Soft talking. And Kevin helps with the med administration.

No, Kevin has not been in the military. His PTSD stems from the fact that he lost a dog from a bad batch of anesthesia. To this day, he's scared of animal anesthesia. His doc prescribed the Xanax, which is helping a lot today.

To all, thank you, for all your kind words of support and prayers. Kevin and I truly appreciate it.

If all goes well, Beety will be home tonight. If that's the case, I'll post more tomorrow.

Sounds as though everything is under control. Glad to hear you have known the vets for
a long time. I hope the Beety's recovery is uneventful.

We had another bad experience with a vet about 20 years ago. Wasn't about money.
It was about one of her assistants. He was carrying one of our dogs holding it in front of
him with outstretched arms and gripping the dog by the forelegs.

I would have said something to him, but he went through a door that said NO
ADMITTANCE. Anyway I asked the vet about it. She refused to say it was an
improper way to carry an animal. She seemed to be focused on public relations rather
than on the proper technique. Didn't go back to her either.

I used to take Xanax a couple decades ago. I don't know why the dr. prescribed it.
Force of habit maybe. When I found out it was for anxiety, I stopped taking it. I had
depression; not anxiety. Anyway, glad it helps Kevin. I got a lot of help from
"Feeling Good" by Dr. David Burns and from Emotions Anonymous. Can't go to
EA anymore. I fall asleep. The last time I tried talking I got all confusiated. But for
about 25 years it was a big help.